Chipmaker Freescale Semiconductor
has created the
world’s smallest ARM-powered chip,
designed to push the world of
connected devices into surprising
places.

Announced today, the Kinetis KLO2
measures just 1.9 by 2 millimeters.
It’s a full microcontroller unit (MCU),
meaning the chip sports a processor,
RAM, ROM, clock and I/O control unit
— everything a body needs to be a
basic tiny computer.

How tiny? One application that
Freescale says the chips could be
used for is swallowable computers.
Yes, you read that right. “We are
working with our customers and
partners on providing technology for
their products that can be swallowed
but we can’t really comment on
unannounced products,” says Steve Tateosian,
global product marketing manager.

The KL02 is part of Freescale’s push
to make chips tailored to the
Internet of Things. Between the
onboard peripherals and a
power-management system tuned to the
chemistry of current generation
batteries, the KL02 is intended to be
at the heart of a network of
connected objects, moving from shoes
that wirelessly report your steps (a
natural evolution of Nike+) to pipes
that warn you when they are leaking.

There are some clues we can glean
about how this chip
might end up inside our digestive
tracts. Freescale already works with
a variety of health and wellness
customers. Both the Fitbit
and OmniPod insulin pump
use Freescale chips. It’s not hard
to imagine a new generation of
devices designed to monitor your
internal health or release drugs and
medicine from within your body.

“We come
across hundreds of
[microcontrollers] embedded in
the devices we use throughout
the day,”
says Tateosian. “For example,
you may come across them when
your alarm wakes you up, you
brush your teeth, make your
coffee, unlock your car door,
open your garage, put down the
car window, pay the parking
meter, tell the time on your
watch, measure your heart rate,
distance, and pace. While
running you may listen to your
music player with several
controllers inside, including in
the ear buds themselves.”

Though it’s going to be available
for general retail, Freescale says
that the KL02 was specifically
designed in response to a customer’s
request. (They aren’t saying who.)
There was a need
for a chip smaller than 3 by 3 mm
and this was the result. Who needs a
chip this tiny? We look forward to
finding out — we think.

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